As content marketing has established itself as an important tool in the travel industry, brands are investing more time and money in creating articles, video and interactive content across all channels, in order to better reach customers.

Content marketing has brought rapid change to the way the travel industry engages consumers. As content marketing has established itself over the last few years as an important tool in the travel industry, brands are rapidly investing more time and money in creating shareable articles, video, and interactive media across all channels.

When planning or dreaming of a trip, consumers invariably end up online. While not in search mode yet for a booking, such consumers can be influenced in one direction or another by content marketing. Such content, which contains elements of journalism but with a (ideally) subtle pitch for a brand, has been recognized as a logical strategy for luring such prospective travelers.

Most travel brands, including leaders such as Cathay Pacific, Qantas, and Ritz-Carlton, have tried their hands at content marketing, with varying degrees of success. In 2016, there’s nothing fresh about the idea of marketing-focused content; instead the innovation comes in the execution. Those range from Virgin Airlines’ Warholian 5-hour plus preroll ad for fictional competitor Blah Airlines to Southwest Airlines’ reality TV-like live coverage of Winter Storm Jonas via live stream on Facebook.

The report, which includes interviews with top execs from Southwest, Ritz-Carlton and David Beebe, VF of global creative and content marketing at Marriott, looks at what’s working in content marketing, what’s tired and how to determine ROI.

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About These Reports

This is the latest in a series of twice-monthly trends reports that brief readers on a specific trend, providing insight into the current state of the market, the context around the trend, and where the industry is heading in the near future.

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